Tuesday, June 2, 2026

No more Karma for the East Village

Karma has quietly left the neighborhood. 

The art gallery, which at one point operated a bookstore and three exhibition spaces, has closed its last East Village locations. 

Art dealer and publisher Brendan Dugan debuted Karma at 188 E. Second St. between Avenue A and Avenue B (above) in November 2016. A smaller gallery arrived later at 172 E. Second St. (That space is now Holographic Studios.) Karma Books opened in April 2018 at 136 E. Third St. between Avenue A and First Avenue, and closed in April 2025. 

They've also recently left 22 E. Second St. between Second Avenue and the Bowery after nearly five years. (H/T Garth).
As for 22 E. Second St., Willard Morgan started the Ideal Glass Studios, an artist-run film & TV production studio, here in 2004 ... and the Second Street building was in use as a gallery and art collective.
Morgan, who still owns the building, runs Ideal Glass Studios from a location on West Eighth Street. 


As for Karma, they debuted their flagship New York location in the 10,000-square-foot ground floor of the old Otis Elevator Company Building on West 26th Street last summer. They also have an outpost in Los Angeles.
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1 comment:

  1. jJune 2, 2026 at 10:37 AM

    Too bad Karma painted out the old school Ideal Glass sign that had been there for decades and removed any character from the building with the flat black paint.

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